Introduction
“Why she had to go, I don't know, she wouldn't say…”
We’ve all felt a pang of recognition in these words, sung beautifully by Paul McCartney in “Yesterday”, a bittersweet reminder of love lost or times past. Moments like this—where music touches something deeply human—happen because of the way our brains process sound and memory together. Clearly, music has a unique power to move us, often in ways we can’t easily explain. A sudden chord progression or haunting melody can cause our skin to erupt in goosebumps or our eyes to well up with tears. Scientists refer to this phenomenon as “frisson,” or aesthetic chills—a deeply emotional response to stimuli like music, poetry, or art.
But what exactly happens in the brain when music moves us to such extremes?
Taken from: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/the-beatles-yesterday-ep-that-coincided-with-controversy--434667801512232892/
The Neuroscience of Goosebumps: How Music Impacts the Brain
When we hear a song that “speaks” to us, a cascade of neural processes sets off in the brain. The auditory cortex first processes the sound waves, distinguishing tones, pitch, and rhythm. From here, the music reaches the limbic system—particularly the amygdala, which processes emotions. This “music-emotion highway” primes our brain for an emotional experience, especially when it detects certain musical patterns or surprising shifts in rhythm, which heighten anticipation and pleasure.
But the true star of this response is the brain’s reward circuit. When music activates this pathway, specifically within the nucleus accumbens, dopamine—the “feel-good” neurotransmitter—is released, much like it would be in response to food, socialising, or even falling in love. The anticipation of a favourite section or a sudden crescendo can create an intense reward response, which explains why these chills often feel almost euphoric. Studies using functional MRI (fMRI) have shown that when we experience frisson, blood flow increases in regions related to reward, arousal, and even memory, linking emotional music to deeply ingrained experiences or feelings.
Why Certain Songs Trigger Chills and Tears
Not all songs give us chills, and some are more likely to provoke a response depending on their structure and our personal connections. Music that includes unexpected changes—such as shifts in harmony, tempo, or volume—often catches the brain off guard, creating a pleasurable “reward surprise.” This unpredictability in music, known as the “prediction error” in neuroscience, stimulates curiosity, making the brain work harder to understand the change. This element of surprise, paired with familiar sounds or genres, contributes to chills and makes certain songs feel overwhelmingly poignant.
Personal memories also play a crucial role in these reactions. Music with emotional lyrics or nostalgic melodies tends to have strong associations with life experiences, activating the hippocampus (responsible for memory) and heightening emotional impact. For example, a wedding song, a song that reminds someone of a loved one, or a piece of music frequently played during one’s childhood can act as a time machine of sorts, emotionally transporting us back to those moments. This combination of nostalgia and emotional association supercharges the brain’s emotional centres, making certain songs far more likely to trigger chills, goosebumps, or even tears.
Taken from: https://www.kakou.org.uk/your-brain-on-music/
The Therapeutic Side of Music
One of the primary uses of music therapy is to reduce stress. Music affects the autonomic nervous system by slowing heart rate and breathing while decreasing cortisol levels, the body’s main stress hormone. Calming music, often with a slower tempo and minimal rhythmic variation, can activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which governs rest and relaxation, thereby producing a calming effect. Research shows that regular exposure to relaxing music can help lower anxiety levels, making it a valuable tool for people with chronic stress or anxiety disorders.
Furthermore, since music triggers dopamine release, it’s a natural mood booster. Studies have shown that listening to music can increase dopamine by as much as 9%, a boost comparable to engaging in exercise or eating a favourite treat. Music therapy, especially in managing conditions like depression, involves creating playlists that provide uplifting and motivational sounds to induce positive emotional shifts. Over time, this process can help rewire emotional patterns, promoting healthier emotional responses to stress.
Notably, in patients with Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia, music therapy is used to stimulate memory recall and cognitive engagement. The rhythmic and repetitive nature of music can “unlock” memories stored in the brain, as it bypasses language centres and directly engages with the limbic system and hippocampus. In particular, personalised playlists designed around patients' favourite songs from their past can trigger recognition and recall, allowing moments of clarity and reconnection.
Lastly, beyond the personal impact, music therapy fosters social bonds. Group sessions that involve playing instruments, singing, or listening to shared music can improve social skills and empathy, particularly in patients with autism or social anxiety. These interactions promote dopamine and oxytocin release, hormones that enhance trust, empathy, and connection. Sharing music in a group setting, even if you have different music taste buds, creates a sense of unity, allowing participants to express emotions they might otherwise find difficult to communicate.
A Uniquely Human Experience
Music’s ability to give us chills, tears, or comfort taps into one of the brain’s oldest reward systems, combining the precision of auditory processing with the raw power of emotional memory. Whether by triggering goosebumps or facilitating a sense of belonging, music’s effects on the brain reveal its capacity to impact human experience in profound ways. For many, music will continue to be an essential tool for mental health, as both a powerful emotional catalyst and a gentle healer. So, the next time you hear “Yesterday” on the radio, or feel a shiver down your spine from your favourite song, remember that your brain is doing what it was wired to do: letting you feel deeply and connecting you with life in one of the most uniquely human ways.
Taken from: https://www.radioart.com/blog/music-and-the-brain-musics-profound-impact-on-memory-stress-and-emotion
References
Grewe, Oliver, et al. “Listening to Music as a Re-Creative Process: Physiological, Psychological, and Psychoacoustical Correlates of Chills and Strong Emotions.” Music Perception: An Interdisciplinary Journal, vol. 24, no. 3, Feb. 2007, pp. 297–314, www.cogsci.ucsd.edu/~creel/COGS160/COGS160_files/GreweChillPhys07.pdf, https://doi.org/10.1525/mp.2007.24.3.297.
Panksepp, Jaak. “The Emotional Sources of “Chills” Induced by Music.” Music Perception: An Interdisciplinary Journal, vol. 13, no. 2, 1995, pp. 171–207, www.jstor.org/stable/40285693, https://doi.org/10.2307/40285693.
Sloboda, John A. “Music Structure and Emotional Response: Some Empirical Findings.” Psychology of Music, vol. 19, no. 2, Oct. 1991, pp. 110–120, https://doi.org/10.1177/0305735691192002.
THIS IS SO INTERESTING!!